In many applications, high speed data may be transferred from a source to a sink substantially simultaneously with the transfer of low speed data. For example, in video applications, video data (e.g., relatively high speed data) may be transferred from a multimedia source (e.g., a camera) to a multimedia sink (e.g., a display). Often, in such video applications, audio data (e.g., relatively low speed data) may also be transferred from the multimedia source (e.g., camera microphone) to the multimedia sink (e.g., speakers). In such multimedia systems, separate dedicated physical mediums are typically used to transfer the video and audio data, respectively. For example, in the case of audio, such multimedia system transfers audio data over a Media Oriented Systems Transport (MOST) bus.
In some applications, the transmission of video and audio data over separate dedicated cables may be acceptable. However, in other applications, such as in automotive and aircraft systems, it is generally desirable to reduce the physical space and weight of cables used for transferring data because of generally stringent space and weight requirements in such systems. Thus, in such systems, it would be desirable to have a single medium through which both video and audio may be transmitted simultaneously. Additionally, it would also be desirable to transmit the data using a simple and inexpensive physical medium, such as an unshielded twisted wire pair.